Pride in Her Chest
by MrTyeDye
Summary: Lynn, confused and insecure about the way her body's changing, turns to Lori for guidance.


Lynn trudged up the stairs with a strong grimace etched onto her face. As her left hand touched the rough mahogany of the banister, the stinging sensation in her palm intensified, causing her to clench her teeth and hiss. When she turned the hand palm-side up towards her, she could see that a bit of blood was still seeping out of the cut in the center.

Just a minute ago, Lynn had taken a rough fall in the backyard while practicing her baseball slide. The lawn was still a little damp from a thunderstorm the night before, and as a result, she slipped mid-sprint and took a tumble. For the most part, she was okay, but her hand got a little sliced up en route. She hated that she had to interrupt her practice session, but she couldn't focus with that incessant stinging distracting her. Besides, she didn't want to risk infection.

Fortunately, she knew precisely what to do in this situation. As the family athlete, she was no stranger to scrapes, cuts and bruises. By now the procedure was permanently ingrained into her memory; wash the cut, dab some Neosporin on a Band-Aid, put the Band-Aid on, done.

Lynn was relieved to see the bathroom unoccupied - a rare sight in the Loud house - so she just let herself in. She cranked the cold dial on the sink as far as it would go and put her hand under it, taking great pleasure in the numbing power of the water's chill. She then gingerly dabbed it dry with a towel, slapped on a bandage, and went on her way.

But as she started to walk out of the bathroom, Lynn took a passing glance at the mirror - and froze. In that one moment, her brain detected an anomaly, and sent out an immediate order to stop and examine the mirror further. She could tell there was something different about her reflection. She just didn't know _what_.

It didn't take long for her to catch on. After looking herself up and down a couple times, Lynn saw a couple of faint, but noticeable mounds a few inches below her neck.

 _Huh. When did I get these?_

After double checking that she had locked the bathroom door, Lynn decided to get a closer look. She stripped off her ruby jersey and flung it to the side, leaving only her jet black sports bra. Before, Lynn found it a little funny that she had to wear a bra at all, since it wasn't as though there was anything for her to cover up.

But now there was. Not something _big_ , or even medium-sized, but something.

A smile came to Lynn's lips, and all the pain in her cut palm seemed to fade away. Ever since her thirteenth birthday, she was anticipating this stage in her metamorphosis. She raised her right hand and carried it over towards her left cup, eager to convince herself that she wasn't just seeing things. Truth be told, she didn't know what a breast was supposed to feel like, but she imagined that hers would feel like a plush toy, or a waterbed.

She was a tad perturbed, then, when her fingers were greeted with a firm, unyielding surface. She pushed down harder, but it had little, if any, give. Her smile disappeared.

 _That's weird_ , she thought. _I'm pretty sure they're not supposed to be that hard._

She touched her right cup, and was met with the same result. Thick, dense and sinewy.

 _But if they're not breasts, then what else could they be?...Are they_ _tumors_ _?!...No, tumors are smaller than that. I think. I hope._

 _Still, there's gotta be some explanation._

It was then that a new possibility dawned on her.

 _Are these... are these pecs?_

The idea was a little foreign to her. True, her chest got plenty of exercise (as did the rest of her), but she never thought it'd be enough to give her visible pectorals. At least, not until she was older. Even so, she figured it couldn't hurt to test the hypothesis. She held her hands out in front of her, locked her fingers and pressed her palms together, trying to put strain on her chest.

She saw her left cup twitch a little when she started pushing, which surprised her enough to elicit a gasp.

 _Was that a bounce?_

She started straining again, this time concentrating the pressure on the right side of her chest. A smile burst across her face when she saw her right cup perform a similar motion.

 _Neat! And I thought only boys could do this!_

At that point, there was no doubt about it; those lumps on her chest were slabs of developing pectoral muscle. With her smile growing in volume, Lynn amused herself by flexing one of them, then the other, then both of them at the same time. The motions were slight - just barely enough to be visible at a close distance - but she took pride in them regardless. At one point, when she was holding down a flex, the following thought crossed her mind:

 _Hey, you know, when I flex real hard, they kind of look like real breasts!_

And just like that, Lynn's smile vanished. That one errant thought took all the air out of her sails. Her lips collapsed into a droopy frown, her head slumped forward and her arms fell limp by her side.

 _...but they're not._

Lynn put her jersey back on, left the bathroom and made her way back down the stairs, intending to resume her baseball practice. It was no use; after what just transpired in the mirror, her head just wasn't in the game. All she could think about were those thick, unsightly pseudo-breasts of hers. It almost made her wish she didn't play so many sports (since her chest wouldn't have ended up that way otherwise), though she swiftly banished that thought from her head.

Still, she fretted over how her body would progress in the coming years. Would she ever have real breasts, or would her chest just stay like this? Was it even _normal_ for a girl to look like this?

If she wanted to get back into her regular routine, she had to get some answers, some form of reassurance. Fortunately, there were two members of the family she could turn to for guidance - one of whom finished puberty long ago, and the other of whom was practically done with it. The former was out running errands, so Lynn would have to settle for the latter.

Lynn climbed back up the stairs and started shuffling towards Lori and Leni's room, hands clasped in front of her. While she wasn't as cowed by the eldest sister as her younger siblings were, she could still be a little apprehensive about approaching her.

She looked inside the room (the door was left ajar) to see Lori reclined on her bed, gabbing away on her cell phone. For a painfully drawn out period of time, Lynn just stood there in the doorway with her hands folded, hoping Lori would notice her. When she didn't, Lynn took a tentative step into her room. And then another. And then another.

She was about three feet inside when Lori finally caught a glimpse of her. The phoneaholic snapped her eyes towards Lynn's, shooting her a biting, half-lidded glare.

"Lynn..." she said in a threatening tone, clasping a hand over her phone's receiver. "...what have I told you about staying out of my room?"

"I-I know, I know," stammered Lynn. "I just- I really need your advice."

"About _what_?"

"Well... it's..."

Lynn folded her arms across her chest and took a step back towards the door. "...it's about my body."

As soon as the word "body" left Lynn's lips, all of the tension in Lori's face was released, and the anger in her expression evaporated. "Lemme call you back, Boo-Boo Bear," she said into the phone before hanging up.

After setting the phone down on her nightstand, Lori turned back towards Lynn and patted the spot on the bed next to her. "Take a seat."

Lynn, with her arms still concealing her burgeoning chest, dragged herself over to Lori's bed and plopped herself down.

"So, what's going on, kiddo?" asked Lori. "You get your first period?"

"No, I already had that last month," said Lynn. "This is about something different."

"What, then?"

"Um..."

Lynn instinctively grabbed her cheeks as they started to heat up, which left the subject of her angst completely exposed.

"It's my chest."

Lori leaned closer towards Lynn, her brow wrinkling with worry. "Why, what's the matter? Are you nervous about growing breasts?"

Lynn looked down at her counterfeit mammaries with her lips locked in a pronounced pout. "Nervous about _not_ growing them, is more like it."

Lori gave her a quizzical look. "What do you mean? It looks like they're already coming in."

Lynn sighed and gave her head a weary shake back and forth. "Feel them."

Lori raised an eyebrow at her request, but complied anyway. She scooted closer to Lynn, held her hand up to Lynn's breast and pressed her fingers into the flesh - or tried to, anyway. Lori's eyelids flipped open when the surface she expected to be soft and supple turned out to be rock solid.

"They're pecs," said Lynn.

"Yeah, I think I got that."

Lori was tempted to reach out and touch them again, but if Lynn's protruding bottom lip and averted eyes were any indication, she was uncomfortable enough already.

"So what's the problem?" asked Lori. "I thought you of all people would like having muscles."

"I do," said Lynn. "I just don't know if I want them _here_."

She wrapped her arms back across her chest, obscuring it from Lori's view. "What if they get _too_ big? What if they block my breasts from coming in?"

Lori, tickled by Lynn's naivete, had to stifle a chuckle. "Lynn, it doesn't work that way," she said. "Breast tissue grows _on top_ of the pectoral muscle, not under it."

Lynn's eyes maintained their melancholy look, but her lips freed themselves from the pout position. Lori smiled, taking solace in the fact that she was making at least some progress.

"Well, that's a relief," muttered Lynn. "But when am I gonna start getting, you know, _real_ breasts? Like you and Leni have?"

Lori breathed out a sympathetic sigh. "Lynn, you're only thirteen. You're not even in high school yet. Give yourself time."

"But some of the girls in my class are already sprouting!" said Lynn. "There's this one girl in my algebra class named Maggie, and she already has these..."

Lynn held her cupped hands a few inches out in front of her. "...these full sized ta-tas! They're almost as big as yours!"

That one statement knocked the wind out of Lori's lungs. If she was drinking a glass of water at the time, she would have spat it all over Lynn's face.

"O-okay, first of all, I'll believe it when I see it," said Lori. "Second of all, the fact is that some girls develop early and some don't. Heck, look at Luna; she's still wearing the same sized bras she wore when she was twelve."

"I heard that!" Luna called from outside the door.

"Ignore her," said Lori. "The point is, I wish I could tell you when you can expect to start developing, but I honestly don't know. It could be in one year, or two years, or three. You'll just have to be patient."

"But I don't want to wait that long!" cried Lynn. "Lori, I-I feel like such a _weirdo_! No other girl in my class has a chest like this!"

Lori gave Lynn a tender, loving look and draped an arm around her broad, thick shoulders. "Well, you're not wrong. It _is_ unusual for a girl your age to look like that. But it's okay to be different."

With her eyes pointed away from Lori's, Lynn slumped over in her seat and crossed her arms, letting out a defiant _harumph_.

"If only the boys in my class saw it that way," she grumbled.

Lori's face hardened, as the tenderness in her eyes gave way to sternness. "You shouldn't base your self worth on what boys think."

"Yes, thank you, Beyoncé," Lynn said with a roll of her eyes.

"Lynn, I'm serious," said Lori. "It's not healthy to spend all your time fretting over how boys see you."

"Easy for you to say!" snapped Lynn. She swerved around to face Lori, sporting a frustrated glower. "You already _have_ a boyfriend! I don't!"

"Lynn, you... I..."

Lori backed off, choked out a labored sigh and gave her temples a light massage. "Okay, look. I get that you're interested in boys, and I get that you want to get a boyfriend. That's okay. But it shouldn't be the _only_ think you think about."

Lori looked Lynn in the eyes and noticed, much to her chagrin, that her glare hadn't broken. With another sigh, Lori continued.

"Besides, do you know what boys _really_ like?"

That, at least, got Lynn to unfurrow her brow as her eyes widened with curiosity.

"Boys like girls who like _themselves_ , Lynn. If you keep trying to change yourself to impress boys, you'll look desperate and needy. But if you hold your head high and convince yourself that you're beautiful the way you are, then eventually you'll start convincing other people, too."

Lori reached her arm back across Lynn's shoulder. "So, let me ask you this. Do _you_ like your chest?"

Lynn took a look at the twin mounds protruding from under her neckline. She remembered how impressed she was when she first caught a glimpse of them in the mirror, and how amused she was when she taught herself how to flex them. For the first time since she left the bathroom, that elation and pride returned to her.

"You know what?" she asked, cracking a smile. "I do!"

"Then that's all that matters," said Lori, donning a smile of her own. "Feel better?"

Lynn nodded, wrapped an arm around Lori's midsection and pulled her into a side-hug. "Thanks, Lori."

"Any time, little sis."

After Lynn released the hug, Lori reached over towards her nightstand and picked up her phone again. But just as she was beginning to redial Bobby's number, she noticed that Lynn wasn't vacating the premises. She was standing in the center of the room, feet shoulder width apart, staring at her older sister.

"Lynn, is there something else that's bothering you?" Lori asked, losing her smile.

"Nah, I'm fine now," Lynn said with a smirk.

Lori jabbed her finger towards the door. "Then leave."

In response, Lynn planted her fists on her hips, as her smirk arched up into a sneer. "Make me."

Lori slapped her phone back down on her nightstand and pushed herself off the bed, rolling up her sleeves. "You do _not_ want to test me, Lynn Loud Junior," she seethed. "I can literally throw you out of here if I have to."

"Wanna bet?"

That challenge eradicated what was left of Lori's patience, and she charged at Lynn with her arms outstretched and her fingers flexing. Just as she was about to grab Lynn, the sporty youngster caught her hands and locked fingers with her. Lori winced at the sensation of Lynn's rough, callous hands compressing her smooth, dainty ones, but forced herself to ignore the pain.

Lori planted her feet on the carpeted floor and tried to push Lynn back. It was no use; Lynn stayed firm like a stone upon the shore, and refused to budge.

"Come on!" grunted Lori. "I am not in the mood for thi-!"

Lynn, in one seamless motion, released Lori's hands, wrapped her arms around Lori's waist, and hoisted her up onto her shoulder.

"Lynn, put me down!" cried Lori, her legs dangling helplessly.

Lynn narrowed her eyes and donned a playful, mischievous grin. "You're the boss."

In a motion that nearly made Lori's heart stop, Lynn gorilla pressed the first born sister and threw her down onto her bed, where she landed with a whump and a harsh bounce.

Lori, having landed on her face, grabbed the mattress and pushed herself up into a sitting position, panting.

"For the record," she said in between gulps of air, "any boy in your grade would be lucky to have a girlfriend who can do... _that_."

Her remark elicited a light chuckle from Lynn. "I guess they would."

After taking a moment or two to catch her breath, Lori scooted back to the foot of her bed and reached for her phone.

"But seriously, I need to call Bobby back," she said. "Get lost, beefcakes."

"Oh, all right."

Lynn began to stroll out of Lori's room, but paused just as she reached the doorway and looked back over her shoulder.

"And thanks again," she said, giving Lori a warm smile. "You're the best."

Lori smiled back, feeling a glimmer of satisfaction for what she managed to do. "Just... just go already, okay?"

Lynn nodded and vacated the room, imbued with a new feeling of pride and self-love. She made a beeline back towards the bathroom and looked in the mirror, this time beaming at the growing girl that stared back at her. She threw off her jersey, exposing the chest she was now pleased to call her own, and flexed it down hard.

"Lookin' good, Lynn."


End file.
